Ever had period jealousy? If you have super heavy menstrual flow and long periods like me, I bet you've experienced it. Somewhere around here, most writers would say that this isn't a post for men, but I think dudes with women in their lives (especially married ones) should know how menstrual cycles work, and understand female hormones, period pain and what "normal" is so they can support their wives through each cycle and make sure they're getting help on root causes if they're irregular. … [Read more...]
How to Find an Affordable Non-Toxic Mattress
The dangers of mattresses off-gassing are talked about far more now than when my husband and I got married and bought our first mattress in 2003. There was so much we just didn't know as we spent hours agonizing over making the best decision. Fortunately, there are many options for natural and organic mattresses on the market today and I've done some of the leg work for you! Keep reading to see the list of natural mattress companies I've compiled over my years of research. Our Newlywed … [Read more...]
Non-Toxic Nail Polish Review: Final Test Results are In!
Back when I wrote about non-toxic nail polish (important because of all the negative health effects of the chemicals found in conventional nail polish) tons of people had questions about all the brands I reviewed. Did the non-toxic nail polish last? How well did it apply? Did it still smell bad? My daughter, our neighbors, and I spent a couple of weeks with wacky looking fingernails to answer all those questions for you. We applied all the non-toxic nail polish brands that I had, … [Read more...]
How to Treat a Tick Bite Naturally
I shared here about how to remove a tick safely, but what is a naturally minded person to do after a tick has been removed? Are there any natural remedies for tick bites? I told my husband he would have been naturally selected out of the human race had he been born in the south before air conditioning! The man sweats like a faucet, and some of our children are taking after him as well, so when we spent a July day walking around New Orleans and the temps were in the high 90s, we were a … [Read more...]
Do You Have Trouble Meditating the “Right” Way? {REVIEW}
I couldn't tell at first if the shrieks were of joy, annoyance, or pain coming from the pool with 11 children in it. When I finally realized that someone was definitely crying in pain, I knew it wasn't mine but was still concerned. One of the kids swimming with us was holding his hand and blood was starting to run down his fingers. It turned out that someone had thrown the dog toy into the pool, and the dog, a highly focused retriever, flew in after it and accidentally put his tooth through … [Read more...]
How to Remove a Tick Safely
Perhaps an old dog can't learn new tricks, but he can see new ticks! My husband, who has made plenty of changes in his day, is in shock this year because he says he's never seen a real live tick before in all his 39 years of life, and now he's seen three: one crawling on me, one biting our son, and another one crawling on our son. Yikes! (Also this is not to say in any way that my husband is an old dog - I don't want to be in the dog house!!) It's a scary year for ticks in … [Read more...]
Potential or (Soda) Pop: What’s the Future of Food Pantries?
Not long ago, we had a conversation on the Kitchen Stewardship Facebook page about whether food stamps (actually called SNAP benefits) should be used for non-essentials, specifically soda. The article I shared was about a statistic that soda is purchased more than any other category of food with SNAP benefits. I get the impression that not everyone who commented had clicked over or read the full article. Surprise, surprise, it's the internet. But nonetheless, the conversation was pretty … [Read more...]
Power Brain Foods for Standardized Testing in Schools
"Do-nut worry" read the cute little tags attached to the double doughnut hole treat our first graders presented to our fourth graders last year before their big, stressful standardized test. School counselors have told me that you can palpably feel the atmosphere change in the third and fourth grade wings of our local elementary schools as the state standardized test approaches. Even though it only reflects marginally on the individual child, and teachers try their best to remain easy-going … [Read more...]
CNN Says Sunscreens are in our Bloodstream – But Keep Wearing Them Until we KNOW They’ll Kill Us!
The news is always depressing, but sometimes it really makes me angry. This time everyone is finally hearing what I've been saying for years about sunscreen, and then the media says to ignore the news. A small study of 24 people has demonstrated that sunscreen chemicals enter the human bloodstream within the first day after using it. This is not a huge surprise, since oxybenzone, the most common sunscreen petrochemical ingredient, is found in 97% of human blood. I reported about the … [Read more...]
Beginner’s Guide to Going Dairy-Free and Gluten-Free for your Kids
So your doctor says your child should cut dairy and gluten for an elimination diet? What does that mean for your life!? Where to begin!? In a culture where pizza is the norm, (hello dairy and gluten fest!), and if you start thinking about other common meals with dairy and gluten literally everywhere, it feels like going dairy-free and gluten-free all at once (or even one at a time) is practically impossible. It's going to change your entire life... I know how you feel. Lots of moms do, … [Read more...]
I got to Interview One of the First “Green” Authors I Ever Read! (Greg Horn on how we can all achieve “Living Well”)
I've been "green" since I was a kid, trying to reduce my human impact on the earth, and I'm still making improvement in how I live my stewardship, like working to reduce single-use plastic food packaging. It wasn't until I was an adult, navigating a safe and healthy life for my babies, though, that I really started to understand the impact of our environment on us. When I started writing at Kitchen Stewardship, in fact, striving to help people balance their family's nutrition, budget, … [Read more...]
Five Weird Tools to Improve your Sleep Without Spending One More Minute of your Time
My college roommate has always said about me, "You are the most sleep-deprived person I've ever met!" This is unfortunately probably more true now as a mom of four kids (who all never slept well) and a small business owner than it was in college. As much as I read about the importance of getting more sleep, to me it always means getting less done. I've even said to people, "Sleep is about to become the new kale." But I'm not on board yet personally. Knowing I might be sleeping all wrong … [Read more...]
New Research: Common Personal Care Ingredient May Cause Newborn Bowel Obstruction with 80% Mortality
Is your baby's colon worth having pretty eyelashes? Would you trade your child's ability to poop for a pretty smelling shampoo? Let's make a deal: You get convenient spray sunscreen, your newborn gets bowel surgery. Sound like a plan? This is the trade-off pregnant women using conventional beauty products may be making every day because of the ingredient oxybenzone, recently under fire for harming coral reefs and even possibly getting removed from the GRASE (Generally Recognized as … [Read more...]
Sunscreen Takes a Hit – Only 2 Ingredients Will be Left with “Safe” Status from the FDA
I've been saying for YEARS that we must stop using conventional sunscreen because of its endocrine disrupting quality (and other reasons). As of last month, February 2019, the science is finally starting to get some momentum beyond the Internet and the FDA is paying attention. What's an "Endocrine Disruptor?" Quite simply, it's a chemical that interferes with, destroys, or mimics human hormones - the endocrine system of our bodies. There are plenty of endocrine disruptors in your … [Read more...]
Sun Protection Trends Finally Swinging in the Right Direction for People AND the Earth! What’s Happening Now with Tatyana Cerullo of Kokua Suncare
Remember last year when Hawaii banned some conventional sunscreen ingredients that were totally toxic to the coral reefs? And now last month the FDA is actually beginning to take steps to remove GRASE status from pretty much ALL the conventional, non-mineral sunscreen ingredients! Things are moving in the right direction for the health of our oceans AND our children's development (and future fertility) and I couldn't be more excited. Today I get to host Tatyana Cerullo to talk about … [Read more...]
Best Kids’ Cooking Videos Online (for Healthy Foods)
Check out some of the best kids cooking videos online... Did you know it is thought that people will remember 90% of what they see in a video, but only 10% of what they hear? And if you consider that children usually only listen to less than half of what their parents try to tell them, that means you have less than a 5% chance your wisdom is being heard! But who has time to make videos for their kids? Good news: there are lots of videos online to teach kids to cook. Here are some of the … [Read more...]
Save the Oceans (& Your Hormones!) Simple Steps to Reduce Plastic in Your Life
Is packing food in plastic storage containers and drinking from plastic bottles safe? Do you risk the plastic leaching chemicals like BPA and phthalates? How and why to reduce plastic in your life: When I was in middle and high school, you could pretty much guarantee I'd be behind the trend of what's "cool," but finally, in adulthood, my geekiness has gotten me ahead of the curve! After over a decade of using our stainless steel bottles as a family, bringing my own bags to the grocery store … [Read more...]
Monday Mission: Memorize the Dirty Dozen Produce List + How to Clean your Produce
If you try to buy organic when it counts to be gentle on your budget, you’re probably familiar with the Dirty Dozen produce list published by the EWG (Environmental Working Group), the same organization that puts out the Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database that the natural sunscreen review relies upon heavily. This is a list of the 12 items that, when consumed, supply your body with over 90% of your chemical pesticide load from fruits and vegetables. You can find the current list here, or see … [Read more...]
Does Your Lifestyle Need a Detox? {Argan Lavender Oil Cleansing Blend for Combination Skin from Wellness Mama}
In the online world, people usually only see names and rarely faces, so as you can imagine there are often mix-ups. I can't tell you how often readers and colleagues alike have gotten Katie at Wellness Mama and I mixed up. Same first name, write about real food and natural living, have a bunch of kids...I'm sure you can see why! I always take it as a compliment, because Katie's work is so thorough and well-researched, she's a great writer with a passion, and she has actually become a … [Read more...]
Cardamom Cranberry Christmas Cake (Grain-free!)
Breakfast or dessert? That's one of my favorite questions for baked goods, and one that isn't asked nearly enough in the popular culture. Healthy Breakfast Treats for School Party Coffee cake, cinnamon rolls, and mass-produced muffins are automatically delegated to breakfast, when in fact they surely deserve to be dessert based on their sugar percentage. That's why I was nervous when I saw that my daughter's 5th-grade class Christmas party was from 8-9:00 a.m. What are they going to eat … [Read more...]
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